Lyn Hawks wrote about the pitfalls with agents coming and going.

Thanks to Tara Lynne Groth, I read this article that I must share with other writers.
https://lynhawks.com/dont-despair/

Finding an agent you like and can work with is difficult. One writer says she wasted a year with an agent who she finally realized was not that interested in her books.

Some people find the perfect agent and give that person accolades for all the help given to the author. In the above post by Lyn Hawks, writers can see the journey toward the published book is not straight and easy. Perseverance seems to be the most important virtue of the author who has books on the shelves in Barnes and Noble and on Amazon. How about receiving over 100 rejections? Would you stay with it that long?

Do you like to listen to podcasts? Do you read fiction or nonfiction?

I am in love with podcasts. I listen to them while I work around the house, at my desk and in bed at night. One of my favorites is Clear and Vivid, with host Alan Alda. The theme is communication. Recently Ann Patchett, author, was his guest. She said that Women read Fiction and Men read more Nonfiction. I would not have thought that to be true. Of course, I know many women read romance novels, and beach reads, but I thought men would be reading the mysteries and thrillers. My father enjoyed western novels.

I used to read fiction all the time. I lost myself in stories about other people, other times, other lands, and hated for a good book to end. From the time I was a child and read all the horse books in the book mobile to reading Ayn Rand in college, totally engrossed in the characters and the philosophy of each character. My early books were Little Women and the Yearling. Later I read Gone with the Wind. I was a big fan of these books. I was addicted to books when I was younger.

I liked those huge historical novels by James Mitchener, also, and books about large families that fought and made up and always loved each other, somewhat like my own. While I still have memories of scenes in the books, I can't remember the title or the authors of most of them. I like to read John Grisham for escape, or I used to read his books. Now I listen on Audible. I like Joslyn Jackson, a prolific Georgia writer and really enjoyed books by Haven Kimel, a North Carolina writer. Recently I listened to a memoir, Dimestore, by the author, Lee Smith. Very interesting book. She is a most interesting lady.

Lee Smith, author

I have no Sirius Radio in my car now. I canceled my subscription because I kept losing the signal here in the mountains. So I listen to podcasts while I drive.

I will not be teaching any classes at Writers Circle studio until next year. So I have a long time to catch up on reading and writing.

But first, I and my friend, Estelle, will be reading from our new book, Paws, Claws, Hooves, Feathers and Fins, and signing books wherever we get an opportunity. If you would like to have us come to a meeting or business once we get our books in hand, about mid-September, let us know. It must be within driving distance of Hayesville, NC.

We will be reading at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC on Thursday, September 20, 7:00 PM. Come out and join us.

WRITERS NIGHT OUT FEATURES TWO CAROLINA POETS

August 29, 2018 – Well-published poets, Janice Townley Moore and Robert Lee Kendrick, will headline Writers’ Night Out at the Union County Community Center in Blairsville, GA, at 7 p.m. on Friday, September 14. The event is free and open to the public. Following the reading is an open microphone where audience members can share their own poetry or prose.

Janice Townley Moore

Robert Lee Kendrick

Moore, who lives in Hayesville, NC, is an Atlanta native and Associate Professor Emerita of English at Young Harris College. Her poetry chapbook is Teaching the Robins (Finishing Line Press) and her work has appeared in esteemed journals including The Georgia Review, Prairie Schooner, Shenandoah, Connecticut Review, Southern Poetry Review, The Journal of the American Medical Association, and numerous others. Among the anthologies that include her poetry are The Bedford Introduction to Literature and three volumes of The Southern Poetry Anthology (Contemporary Appalachia, Georgia, and North Carolina) from Texas Review Press. Moore serves as the coordinator of the North Carolina Writers Network - West poetry critique group, which meets at Tri-County Community College.

Robert Lee Kendrick grew up in Illinois and Iowa, but now calls Clemson, South Carolina home. After earning his M.A. from Illinois State University and his Ph.D. from the University of South Carolina, he held a number of jobs, ranging from house painter to pizza driver to grocery store worker to line cook. He now teaches. Kendrick’s poems appear in Birmingham Poetry Review, Valparaiso Poetry Review, Atlanta Review, Tar River Poetry, Louisiana Literature, and elsewhere. His first full-length collection, What Once Burst With Brilliance, was released in 2018 by Iris Press. His chapbook is Winter Skin (Main Street Rag Publishing, 2016)

Anyone wishing to participate in the open mic can sign up at the door to read three minutes of poetry or prose. Writers’ Night Out is sponsored by North Carolina Writers’ Network-West. The Union County Community Center is located at Butternut Creek Golf Course at 129 Union County Recreation Rd., Blairsville, Georgia 30512, off Highway 129 near the intersection of US 76, phone (706) 439-6092. Food and drinks are available for purchase in The View Grill, but please arrive by 6 pm to get served.  For more information on Writers’ Night Out, contact Karen Holmes at (404) 316-8466 or kpaulholmes@gmail.com.

 

www.karenpaulholmes.com 

www.simplycommunicated.com

www.facebook.com/karenholmespoetry

The genealogy behind our family stories

I am excited about taking a class with highly knowledgeable genealogist, Larry Van Horn. We are fortunate to have him here in our area. I have been a genealogy enthusiast for forty years and published a family history book, Profiles and Pedigrees, Descendants of Thomas Charles Council(1858 - 1911). I spent hours and hours of my time in south Georgia and north Florida, where my ancestors settled after leaving Virginia and North Carolina, searching through old newspapers and walking through old cemeteries.


John Cecil Council 1833 - 1910
My great grandfather

I poured over books in a Baptist church in Early county, Georgia and perused records in Tallahassee, Florida. Finally I had over a thousand family members documented in my Personal Ancestry computer program distributed by the Church of Latter Day Saints. In fact, I taught this program to members of the church in Albany, Georgia where I lived. But as time has gone by, my computer program has become obsolete. I was told to move my files to Legacy, the most popular program today.


However, I seem to have a problem. I can't get my files into Legacy. So I have signed up for a class with Larry and I do hope I can learn how to transfer my files. I want to continue with my genealogy on my computer. With all these classes listed below, I can see myself spending my fall and winter months "digging up bones" again.

Legacy Genealogy Software for Beginners:

You can do genealogy on paper. That is how it was done until only a few decades ago. However if you are researching your family history and not using genealogy software, why? This genealogy class is an introductory course teaching the fundamentals of Legacy 9, the gold standard of genealogy computer software. It will include instruction on the program menus, basic data entry, importing and exporting projects, SourceWriter, hashtags and other features available in Legacy 9. This course is a prerequisite to take any of the advanced Legacy courses offered at TCCC. 15 hrs.

Instructor: Van Horn                    Min: 8

August 28 – September 25           T

6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.                   $45

(**Since postponing for one week, class will meet on two nights during one week of class in order to finish prior to Advanced class.**)

 

NEW Advanced Legacy Genealogy Software:

This genealogy computer class will explore some of the advanced feature sets and research tools available in the world-class genealogy software package. Completion of the Legacy Genealogy Software for Beginners is required to take this class. 17.5 hrs.

Instructor: Van Horn                   Min: 8

October 2 – November 15            T

6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.                   $55

 

Searching for Your Ancestors:

Who am I and where did I come from? That intriguing question has made genealogy research one of America's most popular hobbies. However, where does one begin such research? What resources exist? How can you prove that what you find is true and valid? How do you go beyond America's borders to find roots in other English speaking nations? Searching for your Ancestors offers the beginner and even experienced genealogists alike a fresh approach to genealogy research. Subjects cover the full gambit from organizing your research to exploring your family history using traditional and electronic research, social media, and the newest genealogy tool – DNA testing. Whether you are new to genealogy or have been family hunting since microfilm days, this course will assist you in researching your family in the 21st century. This course is a prerequisite for many of the advanced genealogy courses offered at TCCC.  32.5 hrs.

Instructor: Van Horn                   Min: 10

August 23 – November 15           TH

6:30 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.                   $80

Lisa Long at TCCC says: Also!  We hope this will be of interest to genealogists and others. We are offering:

 

Photo Editing and Restoration: Keep your old photo!  Learn the best scanning and transfer methods to save images digitally.  Preserve the photos for generations to enjoy as you learn easy photo restoration methods to restore your faded and torn pictures.  Learn about various free programs for editing your photographic images. Class will include instruction on how to resize photos for email, printing, and professional editing. (Please note this class does not cover Adobe Photoshop.)  12 hrs.

Instructor: Harris                                  Min: 6

October 15 - November 5                    M

6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m.                          $65

I hope to take this photo editing class as well. I have many old photos and although I have done my best to save them, I know there are new and better methods available. I might see some of you there.

Check out this poem.

Read a powerful poem here and hear the poet read it out loud.

http://www.cortlandreview.com/issue/80/mitchell.php

Maren Mitchell is an excellent poet. This is one of my favorites.

Setting Writers on the Right Track

Anne Bowman, Terri Thrower, Carol Gladders, Caroll Taylor, Nancy Meyers Lisa Long
Back: Richard Cary and Don Long
Sitting in front, instructor: Glenda beall
TCCC Publishing and Marketing Class August 11, 2018


Carol Crawford presented a power point program on what a writer needs to know when preparing a manuscript for publication.
Glenda Beall discussed the importance of marketing before publishing, places to submit poetry and prose as well as online methods of marketing.

 

From 2014, a dog story people seemed to like

Madness

By

Glenda Beall

It was summer and the hot August sun beat down on the fields and pastures surrounding our white frame farmhouse in southwest Georgia.  My sister Gay and I played with our dolls on the covered front porch while Fluffy, a black curly dog near the front screen-door, slept. She had been given to us when she was a puppy, and we loved her. I often buried my face in her soft fur and squeezed her in a tight hug. She licked my face to show me she loved me as well. Wherever Gay and I played, under the huge oak tree beside the house or on the porch, Fluffy was always close by as if she had appointed herself babysitter.

Our playtime was interrupted when Mother rushed out on the porch, grabbed each of us by the arm and hurried us inside.  We were forced to leave our dolls and Fluffy behind.

Being grabbed so quickly and seeing my usually calm mother in such a dither, I cried, “Mother, what’s wrong?”

“There’s a strange dog in the yard.  He looks dangerous. Stay inside until he’s gone," she said.

It was then we saw through the screen door, the large brown dog coming from behind the house.  Mother had noticed him from the kitchen window, his muzzle white with foam, slobber dripping down in long streams. He seemed intent on a mission, looking for a victim.

Mother called to Fluffy, "Come here, come inside, Fluffy."

But Fluffy would not come. Mother did not believe in having pets in the house. Fluffy had never been inside. She ran down the steps heading for the place where she felt secure, her bed under the porch. It was the only refuge she knew.

The strange dog saw her and followed. In minutes we heard Fluffy’s pitiful yelps. I wanted to go to her. I pushed on the screen door, but Mother would not let me open it. I stood safely inside and called Fluffy until she finally came up on the porch. I let out a sigh of relief. I saw no blood. She looked fine to me. I wanted to run out to her and give her a big hug. There was no sign of another dog in the yard.

“He didn’t hurt her, Mother,” I said. “She’s not bleeding or anything.”

Still, Mother insisted we stay inside away from Fluffy who was back on the porch, licking her fur, cleaning herself of the terrible ordeal she had experienced.

My father and brothers came home for the noonday meal, and Daddy examined our friendly pet. He found bite wounds we had not seen. The rabid dog had done the damage. Daddy locked Fluffy in a cage beside the barn. She would be fed and given fresh water as he watched for signs of illness. She was quarantined, a word my sister and I did not know.

Her sad brown eyes begged for our pats and hugs, and when we approached she wagged her bushy tail. But we could only talk to her from a distance and tell her how sorry we were that she had to stay in the cage.  We missed her and every day we asked, “How much longer does she have to stay shut up?”

One day Gay and I went out to visit Fluffy and found the cage shut tight, but our beloved dog was not there.

“Mother, Fluffy’s gone. What happened to her?” I ran inside to the person who always made things right. Tears ran down my cheeks. Somehow I knew she couldn't fix this problem. She seemed as sad as I was, but I couldn't help my anger toward her. If only Fluffy had been an inside pet.

We were little girls and no one wanted to tell us Fluffy had to be euthanized. Daddy said she must have gotten out of the cage somehow. He evidently wanted us to believe she escaped and wondered away. Even today my older brother tells me he doesn't know what happened to our pet.

I knew Fluffy would never have left us. No matter what we were told, Gay and I believed she had been destroyed. I vowed then and there, at the age of six, that when I was grown up and had my own house, I’d have my own dog, and he would sleep in the house and even sleep in my bed so that I could protect him.

We had other dogs as I grew up. They were family pets. Brit was an English Shepherd that was killed when she was run over in our yard by a neighbor kid.  Turbo, a purebred cocker Spaniel, was given to us by an Air Force officer who was going overseas. That was a big mistake. That fine animal deserved a home where he was groomed daily and fed treats, curled up by the fireplace. Instead he ran out and collected sand-spurs and burrs in his lush coat. He went to the field with my brothers and my father. Turbo rode in the pickup and acted like a hound dog. He disappeared one day, and we never saw him again. I always hoped he had found a better place to live.

One week after my wedding day, I was finally able to fulfill the promise I had made to myself. My husband Barry, who also loved dogs, gave me a puppy, a miniature black poodle, that we named Brandy.  This lovable little animal quickly owned our house and both of us. In many ways he looked like Fluffy with his dark curly coat, his deep expressive eyes that could read my mind. For nineteen years I kept him safe in spite of his mischievous ways, his daredevil personality, and his stubbornness. But one afternoon, his old body gave out as he slept in our bedroom. It was raining. Barry was out of town. Alone, I buried him under the trees behind our back yard.

Since that time I've opened my heart to other dogs – Nicki and Kodi, the Samoyeds, so pristine white, always smiling and loving – Rocky, the rescued mix, who was Barry’s dog, but won my heart even as I grieved for Kodi. We protected them well, loved them and they loved us.

Each one had his own personality, his peculiar traits just the way humans do. They all lived long and good lives except for Nicki who died at the age of two from a mysterious malady no one understood. All of them lived in our house and Brandy slept in our bed. The bigger dogs had their own beds or slept wherever they wanted.

Rabies is a terrible disease, and found in wild animals in our area even today. I am grateful that my mother was vigilant enough to protect my sister and me, even if she couldn't save sweet Fluffy.
Did you ever see a rabid animal or have a pet bitten by one?

**************************************************************
Paws, Claws, Hooves, Feathers and Fins by Glenda Beall and Estelle Rice will be available early in September. $16.00
Order now and get a discount: Contact gcbmountaingirl@gmail.com for ordering information.

 "Glenda Beall and Estelle Rice have documented that unique companionship offered by our furred, finned, and feathered friends. The community of animal lovers will cheer for the poodle who rode motorcycles, the rabbit that went to college, and all the other remarkable pets in these pages. It’s a pleasure to spend time with these creatures in a book that is funny, poignant, and full of warmth. 

--Carol Crawford, poet, writer, teacher, owner of Carol Crawford Editing

Writers' Night Out in Blairsville, Georgia

Each month on the second Friday evening, Karen Paul Holmes hosts a night for writers in Blairsville, GA. This event is sponsored by the NC Writers Network West, a program of the state literary organization created for the writers in the far western part of North Carolina and includes bordering counties of North Georgia.

Writers' Night Out: 

• Friday, Aug 10, 7-8:30 pm
• Featured readers: Mary Ricketson and Maren Mitchell
• Followed by open mic*
• Union County Community Center, Blairsville, GA 
• Optional dinner or drink: The View Grill (arrive by 6 to order food)

*Note: We must vacate the room by 8:30 this year, so we reserve the right to limit the number of open mic readers to the first 10 who sign up at the door. Limit 3 minutes per reader. Please time yourself at home. This is normally 1 page of poetry or prose (12 pt Times New Roman). 

Maren O. Mitchell, an internationally published poet, has had poems in POEM, The Comstock Review, Slant, The Pedestal Magazine, Tar River Poetry, Poetry East, Hotel Amerika, The Lake (UK), Skive (AU), and many other literary journals. Her work is also included in The Crafty Poet II: a Portable Workshop; The World Is Charged: Poetic Engagements with Gerard Manley Hopkins; The Southern Poetry Anthologies, V & VII; Stone, River, Sky: An Anthology of Georgia Poems; and more. She has had two poems nominated for Pushcart Prizes and received a first-place award from the Georgia Poetry Society.

A North Carolina native, in her childhood Maren lived in France and Germany. Due to spinal cord surgery when forty, she spent many years learning how to live well in spite of chronic pain. She shares her experiences and advice in her nonfiction book, Beat Chronic Pain, An Insider’s Guide, (Line of Sight Press, 2012) www.lineofsightpress.comwww.lineofsightpress.com .  For over thirty years, across five southeastern states, Maren has taught origami, the Japanese art of paper folding.

Mary Ricketson has been writing poetry 20 years. She is inspired by nature and her work as a mental health counselor. Her most recent full-length collection is Shade and Shelter: Poems of Breaking and Healing (Kelsay Books, 2018).  Her poetry has also been published in Wild Goose Poetry Review, Future Cycle Press, Journal of Kentucky Studies, Lights in the Mountains, Echoes Across the Blue Ridge, Red Fox Run, It’s All Relative, Old Mountain Press, Whispers, Voices, and two other books: I Hear the River Call my Name and Hanging Dog Creek.  Currently Mary is using her own poetry to present empowerment workshops, combining roles as writer and her helping role as a therapist. Her writing and activities relate with nature, facilitate talk about a personal path and focus on growth in ordinary and unusual times. She also writes a monthly column, “Women to Women,” for The Cherokee Scout. Mary is Cherokee County representative for North Carolina Writers’ Network-West, president of Ridgeline Literary Alliance, and an organic blueberry farmer.

Hope you'll come hear these two local poets. Come and read something of your own at Open Mic.